by Josh Combest
580 team members wait anxiously, tense with the pressure of this one moment. 20 individuals are poised to leap into action and will make or break the outcome with less than 2.4 seconds to get it right. A single miscalculation or hesitation will cost the company millions in both earnings and individual bonuses, while performing flawlessly will complement the work of their 580 colleagues and drastically increase their odds of going home victorious.
Formula 1 is not only the most popular and profitable motorsport in the world, but also the one in which winners and losers can be determined by microseconds in the pits.
While your organization’s success isn’t likely to be determined by a single moment less than 3 seconds long, your success is determined by the quality of the teams you assemble and lead. Who you assemble is only the first step in the long process that should continue to evolve and iterate as the environment dictates. Last year’s team may no longer be optimized for this year’s challenges and goals.
The burden, then, is on leadership to continue to assess the organizational needs and map those needs to the existing talent. Once the gaps have been identified, leaders must begin the process of making the necessary adjustments. This happens through a variety of approaches from hiring new team members to upskilling existing talent while continuously ensuring the entire team remains engaged.
When leaders are seeking to optimize a team for the current needs through hiring, there are 3 points they need to take into consideration:
When taking an upskilling approach to team optimization, there are again 3 points leaders should take into consideration:
Just like the 20-person pit crew for an F1 racing team, good won’t be good enough when it comes to competing against those in the market looking to poach your talent and your market share. Your leadership must be great. Your talent strategy and change readiness must be great. And your teams must be great. Invest in ‘great’ continuously, and reap the rewards that follow.